


The Ties That Bind

by Onthecyberseas



Category: Captain America (Movies)
Genre: Bisexuality, Discussion of war, Don't Ask Don't Tell Mention, Friendship, Gen, Male-Female Friendship, Minor Character Death, Old Peggy Carter, Past Peggy Carter/Steve Rogers, Past Riley/Sam Wilson, Pre-Slash, Robbery
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-29
Updated: 2017-09-29
Packaged: 2019-01-06 21:14:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,130
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12219093
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Onthecyberseas/pseuds/Onthecyberseas
Summary: Sam saves an old lady from an attempted purse robbery and makes a new friend. Their friendship spans years as Sam learns to move on from his past.





	The Ties That Bind

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks to my artist @petitelappin her awesome artwork!

Sam Wilson had left the house that day for milk and a carton of eggs, but he ended up coming back with a new friend instead. It all started on his walk into the city towards the best grocery store in town. He had been minding his own business when a man pushed past him. Sam noticed that he was carrying a purse and an elderly woman was yelling at him from down the sidewalk. Springing into action, he dashed after the purse-snatcher. The man was fast, but he was faster thanks to his daily run.

He tackled the man to the ground and took the purse back from him. Spotting police approaching them, the man quickly stood up and ran away before Sam could stop him. Luckily, the police was able to apprehend the criminal fairly quickly and the officers thanked him for his assistance.

Walking back to the woman, he handed the purse back to her. “Thank you,” the woman said, sporting a British accent. “I’m not quite as spry as I was back in the day.”

“Glad I could help, ma’am,” Sam said with a grin. She noticed that she was carrying several bags and asked, “Can I help you with those?”

The woman nodded and handed Sam one of the bags. “I live a block from here,” she explained. She paused and frowned as though she was trying to remember something. “I don’t think I caught your name.”

Smiling, Sam said, “It’s Sam. Sam Wilson.”

The woman smiled and held out her now empty hand. “Margaret Carter,” said the woman, “But most people call me Peggy.”

Sam shook Peggy’s hand and said, “It’s nice to meet you, Peggy.” The name sounded familiar to him, but he wasn’t able to figure out where he had heard it before.

“You too,” Peggy said. They walked down the block to an apartment complex. Peggy inputted her code and the door buzzed open. She waved to the security guard as they made their way to the elevator. They rode the elevator to the fifth floor and Peggy led him to her apartment. Peggy fumbled with her keys as she unlocked the door.

Stepping into the apartment, Sam took in the old decor and the photos on the mantelpiece. He saw Peggy in various points of her life with various people. In many of the pictures, Peggy stood next to a woman about her age. In most of the pictures, they were posed intimately as though they were a couple.

“Hello, English,” said a feminine voice that wasn’t Peggy’s. Sam turned around to find the other woman from most of the pictures walking into the room with the help of a walker. The woman noticed Sam and looked curiously as him. “Who’s this?”

Sam stepped forward. “Sam Wilson, ma’am.”

Peggy cut in. “My purse got stolen and Sam heroically took the thief down.” The woman looked appreciatively at Sam. Peggy turned to Sam and said, “Sam, this is my wife Angie.”

“Pleased to meet you, Sam” Angie said. “Would you like some tea or schnapps?”

Sam considered the offer for a couple of moments. Figuring that his grocery shopping could wait, he said, “I’ll have some tea, please.”

He helped put away Peggy’s groceries as Angie prepared tea for the three of them. “What do you do, Sam, when you’re not rescuing old ladies?” Peggy asked as they sat at the table in the center of the kitchen.

“I work at the VA and run a support group for veterans,” Sam said.

Peggy’s eyes lit up excitedly with recognition. “Army?”

Sam shook his head. “Air Force.”

“Back in my day,” Peggy said, “I was one of the few women serving in World War II.”

He looked surprised and asked, “Really?”

Peggy stood up and walked out of the room. She returned with a photo of her younger self posing with several generals and a man that Sam recognized from the history textbooks as Captain America. “You served with Captain America?”

“She did more than serve with him,” Angie said as the teapot whistled on the stove.

Sam saw the sadness in her eyes, and he figured that they had been through the same thing. “How long had you been with him when he died?” He asked.

She sighed and answered, “Not long, but sometimes it doesn’t take long for someone to leave an impact.” She smiled over at Angie and then said, “I don’t think I would change the way things turned out if I had the chance. I’ve had a nice, long life and I love my wife.”

“I hope I can believe that someday,” he said. Peggy looked curiously at him and he explained, “I lost my partner, Riley, during combat.” He fought back tears as he relived the memory of Riley’s death.

Peggy put a comforting hand on his. “How long had you been with him?” She asked.

“A couple months,” Sam answered, “We had to keep it secret due to ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’.”

Angie huffed indignantly as she served them the tea. “I hate that law,” she said, “It shouldn’t matter what your sexuality is if you’re willing to die for this country.” Sam nodded in agreement.

As they drank their tea, Sam and Peggy compared their military experiences. He told her about their missions in the Air Force and Peggy told him about World War II and Captain America. Angie listened intently, jumping in at points to comment. Sam felt that Peggy was kindred spirit and he was fond of Angie as well. Several hours later, Sam realized that it was getting late and said goodbye to the two women.

“Thank you for your help,” Peggy said, “If you ever want to come by for tea, you’re always welcome.”

Sam grinned. “I would love to.” She tried to hand him money, but he refused it. As he walked home, he stopped at the grocery store before returning to his house.

Over the next couple of years, Sam visited Peggy and Angie every Tuesday. They had tea and talked about whatever subjects came to mind. Even when Peggy and Angie moved to a nursing home, Sam continued to visit them.

Sometimes, Peggy and Angie would visit him as well as they met for dinner. They were both thrilled to get out of the nursing home and Angie constantly complained about the nursing home food. On his birthday, Peggy sent him a card with a nice check inside. Their friendship grew over the years and Sam appreciated being able to talk about his experiences to someone who understood as well as the normalcy of their routine visits.

There were only four occasions when they met under unusual circumstances. The first was when Angie passed away in 2009 and Sam went to console his friend as she grieved the loss of her wife. The second occasion was for Angie’s funeral the week after where Sam wrapped his arm around Peggy as Angie was lowered into the ground.

The third occasion was in 2011 when Captain America was discovered frozen in ice. As soon as he saw the news on TV, he rushed over to the nursing home. Peggy was in shock by the news, but she didn’t seem upset. In fact, she seemed relieved that Steve was alive.

The final occasion was in 2014 when Sam was on his early morning run. He ran through the city, when a familiar looking man ran past him. “On your left,” Steve said. Sam watched Captain America run past him, admiring his butt as he ran. He had seen a lot of him on the news over the past couple years as his missions with the Avengers became public. He was able to see what Peggy had seen in him and couldn’t help but be attracted to him himself.

As he continued his run, Steve ran past him two more times. “Come on,” he shouted after him, amused by his cockiness as he struggled to keep up. Unable to continue, he slumped down by a nearby tree and tried to catch his breath. 

To his surprise, Steve approached him. “Need a medic?” He teased as he looked down on Sam.

“I need a new set of lungs,” Sam replied, still trying to catch his breath. They bantered back and forth and Steve noticed his air force sweatshirt. He identified his unit and told him about his job. “You must miss the good old days?” He asked, thinking of Peggy and what she told him about her time with Captain America.

Steve laughed, “Things aren’t so bad.” He listed a couple of improvements from the 1940s and mentioned his struggle to catch up.

“Marvin Gaye,” Sam said, “1972. Trouble Man soundtrack. Everything you missed, jammed into one album.” Steve pulled out a little notebook and a pen to write it down.

His phone beeped and Steve looked at it. “Alright Sam, duty calls,” he said. They shook hands and Steve added. “Thanks for the run. If that’s what you want to call running.”

“Oh, that’s how it is?” Sam asked, slightly offended but mostly amused.

Steve nodded. “That how it is.”

He turned to leave and Sam called out, “Wait.” Steve turned around. “Stop by the VA when you get a chance. There’s a friend of mine who would like to see you.”

“A fan?” Steve asked, raising his eyebrows.

Sam shook his head. “Peggy Carter.” Steve looked shocked, but a smile graced his lips. “I’ll definitely take you up on that.”

A car pulled up and the red-haired woman that Sam recognized as Black Widow called out to them, announcing that she was picking up a fossil. Steve rolled his eyes but climbed into the car. Sam continued about his day and headed to work. The next day, he found Steve waiting for him as he arrived at the VA. Sam grinned upon seeing him, “I knew you’d come.”

He talked to his supervisor, who gave him some time off. Once he was ready, he brought Steve to the nursing home. Peggy smiled when Sam came in but gasped in shock upon seeing Steve standing next to him. Sam decided to get them lunch and took their orders as he allowed Steve and Peggy to have a couple of moments to themselves.

When he came back, Steve was sitting by her bedside. He smiled as he walked in the room. None of them talked much as they ate. Afterwards, Steve excused himself to go to the bathroom and Peggy turned to Sam. “Thank you for bringing him to me.”

Sam smiled. “No problem, Peggy.”

Peggy looked at him as though she was contemplating something. After a couple of moments, she said, “You should ask him out.”

“He’s your ex,” Sam said, flustered.

She simply smiled and said, “True, but I moved on a long time ago. I see the way you look at each other.” Sam didn’t answer for a few moments, and Peggy asked, “Remember what I said when we first met?”

Sam tried to recall what she was referring to. “That I wouldn’t change things even if I had the chance and that I had a nice long life with Angie,” she answered for him. He nodded as he remembered that day. “I want you to have that as well,” she said, “You’ve been heartbroken about Riley for far too long.”

He found that he couldn’t argue with that. Steve came back and Sam prepared tea for the three of them. They spent the rest of the day catching up, and left as soon as Peggy declared that she needed a nap.

On the way out, Steve said to Sam, “Thanks for bringing me to her.”

Sam smiled. “It’s my pleasure.” Taking a deep breath, he decided to take Peggy’s advice. “Do you want to go out sometime? I can help you catch up on everything you’ve missed.”

Steve paused for a moment and then smiled, “I’d like that.”

They made arrangements as they made their way back to Steve’s apartment building. After saying goodbye, Sam took the Metro back to his house. As he reached the house, he looked at the pictures on his fridge. One was of his family, one was of him and Riley, and another one was of him, Peggy, and Angie. He lingered on the photo with Peggy, smiling as he thought of all they had been through over the years. He remembered the day that they met. He had left the house for milk and a carton of eggs, but he came back with a new friend instead. Not only had he gotten a new friend, but he now had an opportunity to move on and start fresh. All thanks to Peggy Carter.


End file.
